Facing Death
by ImAlwaysEarly
Summary: Now that Tony has come out as Iron Man, will his family and friends have to pay the price for his selfish motives? Will Aria be resilient or break under the pressure? Part 2 of the story of Aria Stark. [Set during Iron Man 2]
1. Chapter 1

**Thank you all for reading Family Reunion! Now, onto the sequel. If you haven't read Family Reunion, I highly suggest that you do. So enjoy the new series, I might be already planning out the sequel to this one as you read this!**

* * *

"Your drink Miss Stark," a young blonde offered her boss.

"Thank you Sharon," She replied.

Aria was waiting backstage at the 2010 Stark Expo. Around her were scantly-clad dancers in Iron Man costumes. She brought the glass to her lips, letting the liquid burn her throat. The sound of a rocket roared off in the distance, cueing the dancers to start evacuating the backstage area. This signaled Aria to finish off her drink, grimacing at the taste of it. Once she had set the glass down, her assistant swiftly took it away to refill it.

The sound of AC/DC pumped through the sound system and the roar of the crowd increased exponentially. As the last notes of the song faded, her brother's voice echoed throughout the plaza. Her eyes were glued to the editor's monitor backstage watching the keynote speech being given through different angles.

"Thank you Sharon. This is my last for the night," Aria informed her assistant, relieving her of the freshly filled glass.

The young assistant watched her boss consume the whole drink in one gulp. "Yes mam," Sharon replied.

"Aria!" Her brother shouted, walking from darkened part of backstage.

"Tony!" Aria grinned, "that was quite the entrance!"

"We've got to go!" Happy shouted over to him from the door leading outside.

"I'll call you tomorrow to see how your speech went," Tony called over to her as he left.

"We've got sixty seconds Miss Stark until your out there," the director informed her.

Aria passed the phone in her hands to Sharon, black heels adorned her feet while a burgundy cap sleeve dress hugged her curves. Her hair had been curled and styled, giving her a 'pinup girl' look. The director appeared next to her, motioning for her to take the stage as the video faded to black. Her hand reached to her back where her wireless mic's battery pack was located and turned it on.

"This year at the Stark Expo we will be showcasing to the world how we can and will make not just America, but every country a better place. Starting tomorrow all of our exhibit halls and workshops will open and be available to all of you and anyone else who wants to see just how bright our future really can be," Aria explained, walking toward the center of the stage. Various clips appeared on the screen behind her of the various buildings. "You can discover on our website all of our upcoming events. So once again, thank you for visiting Stark Expo."

Applause, cheers, and catcalls erupted from the audience as she finished her speech. Her eyes were bombarded by flashing lights of the press from the side, documenting the momentous event. Her feet swiftly took her offstage as she continued to smile and wave. The backstage are wasn't as hectic before. It only a skeleton crew mani g the essential functions of the plaza.

"Miss Stark?" Her assistant called over to her. "Miss Potts called while you were on stage to inform you that Mr. Stark received a subpoena for a hearing in Washington DC. She would like to know if you would like to fly up there with her."

"Call her back and tell her I'll be at the jet in an hour. Enjoy the weekend off," Aria replied to her assistant.

* * *

"Aria, hey. How are you?" Justin hammer called over to her.

She had spotted him earlier and had tried in vain to go unnoticed by him. "I'm doing good. And yourself?" She asked out of curtesy.

"I'm doing good. I was wondering, are you free later because I know this great restaurant near the mall," he asked her with a Cheshire grin.

"I'm sorry, I can't. Once this is over I have a few meetings to attend to later today and then I need to head back to New York. Things I need to over see for the Stark Expo," she explained, hoping that would get him to not bother her any more.

"Maybe some other timed," Justin Hammer winked.

She kept wander the hall until she had found Tony and Pepper. Arias face still held a look of disgust as she came upon the two if them.

"Hammer?" Tony inquired.

"Yeah," Aria confirmed, her mouth set in a thin line.

"Have you told him you're not interested?" Pepper asked.

"Numerous times," Aria sighed. "I don't think he understands what the word no means."

Before Tony could give a snarky reply, the doors to the chambers opened and everyone started to enter. Aria followed in behind Tony while keeping an eye out for Justin Hammer.

The press entered last as Pepper and Aria were surrounded by military generals from various branches. Tony had felt he'd rather flirt with Pepper than wait for the senators heading the hearing to start.

"Mr. Stark?" Senator Stern asked loudly, attempting to grab Tony's attention.

Pepper motioned for Tony to turn around. "Yes dear?" Tony answered the Senator, gaining a round of laughs from the room.

"Can I have your attention?" the senator stated.

"Absolutely," Tony smirked.

"Do you or do you not posses a specialized weapon?" Stern questioned.

"I do not," he answered.

"You do not?" Senator Stern confirmed, his annoyance of Tony already showing.

"I do not," Tony repeated. "Well, it depends on how you define the word weapon."

"The Iron Man weapon," he clarified.

"My device does not fit that description," Tony lectured.

"Well then how would you define it?" Senator Stern pressed further.

"I would define it by what it is, a high tech prosthesis. That's actually the most apt description," Stark described.

"Its a weapon and my priority," Stern started.

"If your priority was the well being," was all Tony could get in before the senator cut back in.

"My priority is to get the Iron Man weapon turned over to the people of the United States of America," the Senator explained.

"Well, you can forget it. I am Iron Man. The suit and I are one. To turn over the Iron Man suit would be to turn over myself, which is tantamount to indentured servitude or prostitution, depending on what state you're in. You can't have it," Tony replied, defending himself.

The senator stared at Tony with a look of frustration settling on his face. "Look, I'm no expert," he started.

"In prostitution? Of course not, you're a senator. Come on!" Tony interrupted, each sentencing oozing with sass. His response once again filled the room with laughter.

"I'm no expert in weapons, but we have someone here who is," Senator Stern started.

Aria's phone started to vibrate in her hand, Phil Coulson appeared on the screen along with his photo.

"I need to take this," Aria whispered to Pepper before getting up to leave. "It's important."

Pepper just gave her a questioning look before turning back to watch Tony sass his way through the hearing.

"Phil, what can I do for you?" Aria smiled.

"How long can you stay in DC?" He inquired while she paced the foyer.

"I can stay until tomorrow. I've got important Star Expo things that I need to over see and I'm flying to Monaco on Tuesday," the young woman responded. "Why? Has something happened?"

"There's been a sort of development that we would like your advice on which will require you to meet with Director Fury tomorrow," Coulson explained.

"When I'll head over to S.H.I.E.L.D. once Tony's hearing is over. Actually, I came with Pepper and I would rather they not know where I'm going," Aria confirmed, trailing off towards the end.

"There's already a car waiting for you. You'll recognize the agent picking you up," he added.

"I'll see you soon," Aria spoke into the device, noticing the doors open and people flow out.

"Goodbye Miss Stark," Coulson replied.

She pulled the phone away from her ear and searched for her ginger friend. When her eyes spotted the woman she darted through the crowd to join her.

"What happened?" Aria interrogated her.

Before Pepper could reply Tony appeared, with Rhodey by his side, and interjected his own answer, "Long story short: I'm keeping my suit and Hammer lost his military contract."

"I'm proud of you," Aria smirked, placing her arm around her brother's shoulders.

"Well, we've got to head back to LA. Do you want a ride to the airport?" Pepper asked Aria.

"No thanks, I have some business I need to attend to in DC. I'll see you guys Tuesday though. Nice seeing you Rhodey," Aria replied.

She gave her brother and friend a quick hug before navigating through the still crowded foyer and right past Justin Hammer. Her feet carried her swiftly down the steps of the building, looking for a familiar face by a black Ford. When she spotted the agent picking her up, she couldn't have been more surprised.

"Sharon!" Aria cried in shock. "You're the one Coulson sent to pick me up?"

"Yes I am. Let's head go. You can ask me any questions you might have on the way over," she smiled, gesturing for the brunette to get in.

Aria climbed into the black sedan and buckled herself in, still in shock from the news she discovered. Sharon looked over at her passenger with a smile, proud of how she well she had kept her secret.

"So, you're a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent?" Aria hesitantly asked.

"Yes. You are a valuable and important asset to S.H.I.E.L.D. and when you told Coulson you were going to hire your own personal assistant he sent me to obtain the position. They wanted to keep you safe and having a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent keeping an eye on you was the best plan of action," she explained. "Director Fury thought it would be fun to put Peggy Carter's niece on assignment to protect Howard Stark's daughter."

"Couldn't they have just told me that they wanted me to have one of their agents as my assistant slash body guard? I would have agreed to it," Aria replied, her eyes glued on the moving scenery, unsure if she wanted to look over at her assistant.

"You seem really okay with this," Sharon tested.

"I understand that S.H.I.E.L.D. has secrets and that's how they work. S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't know that I would act so positively about this," Aria sighed, placing her face in her hands.

"We're here," Agent Carter announced, causing Aria to lift her head up as they pulled into the parking garage.

* * *

"Director Fury, hello," Aria greeted as she shook his hand.

"We'd like your help with a few things today and tomorrow is like to have you part of a new project," Director Fury stated. "Let me show you what our engineers are having trouble with."

Director Fury led her to the elevator. He ordered it to go to basement level. The two stood quietly in the elevator, Aria silently wondering where Sharon had gone to. Quickly the two sunk bellow the ground to a vast open area. Her mouth dropped open as she witnessed the site before her.

"How long has this been here?" Aria asked with a laugh. "No wait, secrets. I'm not allowed to know probably."

"Exactly. You can see that we are building a helicarrier. Inside it is where we are having our problems," he explained. "We were hoping you could figure out what was wrong and help fix whatever's it is."

He started to lead her down the path to the flight deck of the helicarrier. She kept staring at it in awe and tried to mentally figure it all out.

"Can she do anything special? What's her purpose?" Aria curiously inquired as they passed jets having their onboard systems checked.

"She'll have a camouflage system. The outside panels will mirror what is around them effectively cloaking them in the sky," he answered. "And that's all I'm going to tell you. Can't have you learning all of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets."

He took her into the heart of the helicarrier and into the command room. There were cables running everywhere, threatening to trip someone if they were careful enough. Aria's eyes scanned over every inch of the room, noticing a man waving over to the pair.

"This is where I leave you. I'll see you tomorrow Miss Stark," Director Fury informed her.

Aria made her way over to the man in a S.H.I.E.L.D. work suit. When she approached the man he hindered her a pair of safety glasses and started to explain the problems he was accruing.

Aria's day had been spent working on the helicarrier, assisting with the installation of their screens and fixing the software problems they had. She spent the night at her assistant/S.H.I.E.L.D. agent's apartment. It was in a quaint building. The next morning Aria Stark had the meeting that would change the world. The young women entered S.H. .D. headquarters, Agent Carter escorting Miss Stark to the conference room where Nick Fury, Agent Coulson, and a hand full of other people who she didn't recognize. Agent Carter joined her in the room, signaling to Director Fury that the last member was present.

"You've all been asked here to be part of one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s most important projects," Director Fury explained, motioning to the screen on the wall that would soon display the visual elements of the meeting. "In 1942 Howard Stark and Dr. Abraham Erskine created the formula and method of how to create a super soldier."

The screen now showed a picture of Dr. Erskine and Aria's Father. Her eyes were glued to the screen, as she was still in the dark about some of what her father had done.

"With the first and only chosen participant, he went from this to this," Fury continued, showing the before and after pictures and statistics of the patient. "Dr. Erskine was killed minutes after the experiment, leaving the test subject as the only one. Steve Rogers had become America's chance for victory. After taking down the Nazis sub organization Hydra, he disappeared in a valiant move to save America. After years of searching, the U.S. Government deemed him missing in action."

Everyone had watched as the screen showed various images of Hydra, The Howling Commandos in action, and Steve Rogers.

"As much as I appreciate this interesting history lesson, why are we here?" A pudgy, balding man asked.

"You are all here to because three days ago we discovered Captain America. He was frozen in the ship he crash landed. We are moving his body, to DC to thaw him and run tests," Fury concluded. "You will all be brought in on various stages of the project. Any questions?"

An assistant began passing out large Manila envelopes with labels marking the owner. Aria took hers in her hands and started to unwind the string that was securing the closure.

"The information in those are highly sensitive with classified documents. They are for your eyes only," Fury warned. "You're dismissed."

Aria stood with her purse slung over her shoulder and arms hugging the envelope. She made her way over to Phil, knowing he must be excited as excited as her about the discovery.

"Phil! On a scale of one to ten, how are excited are you?" Aria smiled, the corners of her mouth reaching her ears.

"More excited than when you finished your work on Lola," he laughed. "There is one more thing that Director Fury would like to talk to you about. It won't be long. Your plane leaves in two hours doesn't it?"

"Well, it's my plane and all, I think that it would just wait for me to get there before it takes off, so I can leave whenever really," She quipped.

"Aria, if you'd follow me," Fury called out, motioning her to join him.

He led her to a small room where Agent Sharon Carter was already waiting. Aria looked a little worried, afraid she might lose her new friend and fabulous assistant. The room was a standard S.H.I.E.L.D design, sound proof and grey with the S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol on the wall. The three sat down at the table, Aria next to Agent Carter but across from Director Fury

"I want Agent Carter to stay as your assistant. You're too important to not have someone keeping an eye on you. We will have her reassigned once Rogers is thawed and introduced back into the world. She has her own part to play," Fury explained. "I'll find someone to take her place when the time comes. Or you could just officially join S.H.I.E.L.D. and work here full time."

Aria let out a sigh of relief, "I'll think about it. I think Tony needs me at Stark Industries at the moment, what with me in charge of the expo and him taking care of things in California."

"Keep it in mind, you're always welcome here. I have one more thing. Agent Ramanoff was placed as a shadow in Stark Industries. I need you two to go along with whatever she says. It's vital that you don't blow her cover," Fury added.

"How long as she been at Stark Industries?" Aria inquired, a look of shock adorned her face.

"Almost six months now. Everyone seemed too busy with Stark Expo and Tony being Iron Man to notice," he explained. "Anymore questions?"

"No," Aria answered while the woman sitting next to her simply shook her head.

"Alright then, I believe you two have a plane to catch," he responded, dismissing the two women.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all for checking out the first chapter. A special thank you for those who've reviewed, favorited, and placed on alert. Originally I wasn't planning on having a romantic interest in this story, but thanks to NicoleR85, I had an idea that will place one in that will only improve the story and future sequels. I'm excited. I also might have written part of this chapter slightly intoxicated. I'm 25, so it's okay. I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

As Aria descended the stairs from her jet, her black heels clicking on the metal, the phone in her purse sprung to life quickly then died down. Her small, manicured hand reached into her black couture purse and pulled the object out. _One Missed Call: Agent Ward_. With a smile she slipped the object into her blazer pocket. Agent Carter followed her down the steps and fell in line next to her.

"You have an important meeting at the expo tomorrow morning with Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman for the interactive children's exhibit," Sharon informed her, study the tablet in front in her hands. "They have some questions about using Stark property for some myths for their show."

"Good. Enjoy the rest of the day off. We've both got a bit too look over. I'll see you tomorrow morning," Aria smiled, stepping into the perl white Audi waiting for her.

It took her an hour to reach her apartment building through the gridlock traffic. She practically floated through the lobby and to the elevator. Aria stood in the middle of the pristine lift as it flew up as high as it could go. The room filled with a light 'ping' as the door swiftly pulled apart. After a minute if searching through her purse, she found her keys and slipped one of them into the lock on the door in front of her.

She entered her duplex penthouse overlooking Central Park the colonial style made her feel like she wasn't in Malibu; the reason she purchased it. She took a left as she entered and walked toward the living, where she would find the bar. Over the past year she had taken to drinking more to deal with the constant headaches she received. When she placed her bag down on the couch nearest to the bar and walked up.

"What'll it be?" A man asked, popping up from his hiding place behind the bar.

Aria stumbled, putting her hand over her heart with her eyes wide, "Jesus, Grant Ward! Not cool!"

"I'm sorry," he apologized pulling her to him.

"How long have you been back?" Aria asked, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck; causing him to grimace.

"I got in this morning," Grant informed her. "And can you not hug me that tightly?"

"What happened? Come on, we've been together for almost a year. Who am I going to tell what happens on your missions?" She pleaded, pouring herself a scotch.

"I'm sorry, I just can't tell you," he replied as he staring into her big blue eyes.

"When do you leave again?" Aria pouted, letting her hands slide down to his chest while his hands grabbed her hips.

"Tuesday morning," Grant replied.

"I leave Tuesday morning as well," she whispered, leaning up and pressing her lips to his.

He slipped his right hand up the back of his shirt while his left pulled her closer. Aria opened her mouth a little, allowing him to explore the familiar territory once again. His hand unfastened her bra, then slipped to the front, pushing her blazer off her shoulders and to the ground.

Aria pulled away and looked at the man in front of her. "If this is going any further, then let's go somewhere more comfortable," she suggested. "And let me just finish this."

She threw the glass back and swallowed the drink in one. As she set the glass down her boyfriend picked her up as she giggled into his neck.

* * *

"Good morning Miss Stark," Sharon greeted as her boss sat in the back seat of her Audi.

"Morning," Aria grumbled.

Her hair was placed into a bun with a pair of black Ray Bans adorning her face. She wore a pair of black slacks, black boots, and a navy blue dress shirt.

"Long night?" Sharon smirked.

"It was worth it," Aria sighed, placing her head in hands.

"So how is Agent Ward doing?" She inquired, glancing towards the brunette.

Even though the other woman couldn't see, Aria's eyes grew wide with fear. Her breathing became slow as she turned to face her assistant/S.H.I.E.L.D. body guard.

"We never told anyone. Pepper and Tony don't even know about us! How?" Aria questioned.

"Agent Ward went under a polygraph test at S.H.I.E.L.D. five months ago. Agent Coulson was asking him some questions. I was the only other one in the room. Don't worry, only Coulson and I know," Agent Carter answered.

"So Coulson knows then? And why was Grant taking a polygraph test? Should I be concerned?" She started to panic.

"Coulson thought that Agent Ward was keeping something from him, from S.H.I.E.L.D. We found out that thing was you," Carter explained. "How did you two meet?"

"You remember over a year ago, when that building at Stark Industries blew up? He carried me out of the building, made sure I was safe. Grant visited me in the hospital later that evening while everyone else was focused on my brother. It was nice having someone that cared about just me and not because of who I'm related to," Aria regaled, finishing just as the car stopped. "This stays here, no one else. If Phil asks, you tell him that he has to come to me or Grant."

"Will do," Sharon smiled. "Would you like me to get you a coffee before your first meeting?"

"If you do you'll be my hero," Aria laughed, climbing out of the car.

* * *

Aria and her assistant arrived in Monaco for the Monaco Grand Prix in style. The two had traveled directly from the airport to the Hotel de Paris. Aria had worn a tight light blue dress with a high collar and modest neckline while her assistant wore an off white dress.

"Aria!" Tony exclaimed, pulling her into a hug.

"Tony!" Aria laughed.

"Did you just get here?" He inquired, walking into the dining area with his sister on his arm.

"Yeah, I did. What's this I hear about you making Pepper the CEO?" She asked. "I'm not upset, I just wish you would've given me a heads up! I've had so many people asking me about the change and I don't know what to say!"

"Really? You're not too upset?" He stopped her, looking her in the eye.

"I don't want to be CEO. I'm 23 and I have so much I want to do," Aria explained. "Plus, I've already been CEO. Remember back when you were kidnapped by the ten rings? I took over the company then."

"Mr. Stark?" A familiar, young woman greeted Tony.

"Aria, this is my new assistant Natalie Rushman," Tony introduced. "Is this us?"

"It can be," Natalie replied, quickly speaking to someone about the table situation.

"Pepper! Congratulations!" Aria exclaimed as she found her old friend.

"Aria! Thank you! You look fantastic! It's been a whirlwind and Tony got himself a new assistant," Pepper explained.

"She seems nice. I want a drink and you look like you could use one too," Aria stated, dragging Pepper Towards the bar. "Oh look, Tony."

Before Tony could speak, he heard a voice carry through the air, "oh look it's my least favorite person, Justin Hammer."

Aria stood behind Pepper, trying her best to hide.

"Anthony? Is that you? Hey pal," Justin Hammer greeted. "And my beautiful Aria."

"Hi," she reluctantly replied, moving out from behind pepper. "Let's go Pepper."

"You know Tony, you're not the only rich guy here with a car," Hammer prodded. "You know Chrisitina Everheart from Vanity Fair. You guys know each other?"

"Yes, yes we do," Christina replied.

"BTW, big story, the new CEO OF Stark Industries," Hammer pointed out.

"I know. My boss would kill me if I didn't get a quote from you for our Power Women in Leadership issue," Christina injected.

"Yeah, sure," Pepper confirmed, nodding her head.

"She's actually doing a big spread on me for Vanity Fair. I thought I'd throw her a bone, you know. Right?" Hammer bragged, hoping to get a reaction out of them.

"Right. Well, she did quite a spread on Tony last year," Pepper replied

"Not surprised," Aria muttered, shaking her head.

"And she wrote a story as well," Tony added

"Very impressive as well," Pepper commented. "I'm going to go to the wash room."

"And I'll be at the table," Aria added, slipping away from them.

Pepper had joined Aria, Sharon, and Natalie at the table sans Tony. The young brunette looked around the room, wondering what is holding her brother up. Instead of finding him cornered by Justin Hammer, she found him instead on the television in a racing suit.

"Pepper," Aria said in an attempt to get her attention. "PEPPER!"

Pepper looked at the young woman, slightly worried, "What? Oh my god Tony!"

The two stared at the television, watching Tony approach his formula one race car.

"I think I need another drink," Aria stated.

She arose from the table, leaving Pepper to watch without her. Her heels clicked quickly against the floor, past the other patrons of the upscale party. Spotting an hole amongst the barrier of people, Aria slipped in, raising her hand to gain the attention of the bartender.

"Something strong, something with Jaeger," she requested.

As she waited for her drink, her head snapped up as her eyes became glued to the screen. Her hand pulled out a large Euro note for the bartender in exchange for her drink. Curiously she sipped her drink, grimacing at hour strong it was. Taking another sip, her eyes resumed their attention on the screen.

"I can't believe Tony is doing this," a voice right behind her said, causing her to jump. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"Justin. You didn't scare me, just startled me," Aria replied, taking another sip.

"He seems a bit more reckless than usual," Hammer commented.

He had moved to stand as close to her as possible, wanting to place his arm around her waist. She sensed his closer proximity and drowned the rest of her glass. His breath lightly grazed the back of her neck. Aria's hand raised once more, deeming her situation should not be one endured sober. The empty glass was placed down on the bar and whisked away to be filled once more allowing Aria to whip her head around to see now her friend was doing.

Aria's brows creased in confusion as she watched the ginger gracefully leap from her chair to speak with Happy. The two hurried off, the only occupants of the table now Agents Ramanoff and Carter. After dropping another large tender for her drink, spun quickly to sit with the two. Unfortunately though, the alcohol had started to affect her causing her to lean into Justin Hammer instead of walking straight.

"Well hey, you okay there sweetheart?" He smirked, gently placing his hands on her shoulder.

"I'm fine. I just need to see my assistant," Aria unconvincingly answered.

She fished her phone out of her clutch with her free hand, Hammer still holding onto her and studying her face. He was able to make out every freckle that adorned her cheeks and nose. After a few minutes of struggling she pulled her phone out and quickly dialed her assistant's number.

"Je suis à la barre. Aidez-moi s'il vous plaît," she spoke. [I'm at the bar. Help me please.]

"You speak French? Well that is a beautiful surprise," Hammer complimented, leaning into the young woman.

His lips gently pressed against hers as his left hand reached up to cup her cheek. Aria pulled back with a look of shock at his boldness. A hand was placed on his shoulder causing him to look over his shoulder.

"Miss Stark, let me help you back to the table," Sharon stated, reaching around to her her arm around Aria's waist. "And let me hold that drink for you."

"Au revoir mon amour," Hammer bid farewell. [Goodbye my love.]

"Vous venez près de son nouveau et je vous blesser," Agent Ramanoff warned before following her two friends back to the table. [You come near her again and I will hurt you.]

Sharon guided Aria back to the table, setting the drink on the table in front of her. Aria's hand picked and downed the whole thing.

"Aria," Sharon started to lecture before Aria interrupted.

"Who's that? Why is he on the track?" She asked, her voice rising in pitch. "Where's Pepper and Happy?"

A large, bulky man entered the raceway. As he walked in the middle of the track the top of his work suit burned away. In his hands were two whips integrated with some sort of technology similar to something he brother would make.

"I don't know. Natasha, does he look familiar?" Sharon replied.

"No," Natasha murmured.

The man on the track lashed out at approaching cars, causing them to flip and halve. Aria's eyes widened as she remembered that her brother was in a car somewhere on the track. The three women sat at the table, Aria in the middle, and watched as Tony's car approached the man in the middle of the road. He lashed out at Tony's car, causing it to fly through the air while the front portion was sliced off. Sharon reached out and grabbed Aria's hand in an attempt to comfort and keep her calm.

"I need air," Aria stated, rushing to her feet, swaying slightly.

Sharon shot up and slid her arm around her boss' waist and led her out of the room with Natasha on their heels. The trio rushed up to Aria's suite, leading her to the balcony to witness the battle that ensued down bellow. Upon looking down, they witnessed Tony, now in an Iron Man suit, kick the Rolls Royce away from where he was standing. The sound of Pepper's scream alerted the viewers from above that Pepper was in the back of that car while Happy was in the driver's seat.

Natasha stood next to Aria, taking as many pictures of the attacker while Sharon stood on the other side videotaping down bellow for documentation for SHIELD. The young brunette's hands clenched the railing in front of her to keep her steady. Her breathing slowed as she tried to remain calm, closing her eyes for a minute to keep herself from being sick. When she opened her eyes, she found an electrified whip around Iron Man's neck as the other whip lashed out at him.

Iron Man pulled the attacker to him and used his whips to throw the man above his head and into the ground. Police swarmed the area, taking the unknown assailant into custody. Happy had helped Pepper out of the car as Tony approached them. Aria stumbled back and collapsed on a couch.

"I want to go home. To New York," Aria stated, placing her hands on her face.

"I'll call the pilot and have him schedule a flight plan," Sharon replied.

"Thank you," Aria mumbled.


	3. Chapter 3

**I do apologize for taking so long to update! I've been busy with my statistics class and then I just couldn't figure out where I wanted the exact path of this story to go. At least I now have bits of a few other stories written, and I've decided a new one to the world of Aria Stark and her family ;)**

**I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Aria strolled through the Stark Expo, finally rested after her trip to Monaco two days ago. The young woman was watching a group of kids on a field trip run around in amazement. Her feet led her to the Oracle Bio-dome. Once she was inside, she stopped at an empty bench and sat down. She had her tablet in her hands, delving through emails and important paper work. As she sifted through her most recent emails, one from her brother stood out the most

_Aria,_

_Promised Justin Hammer the open spot next Friday evening. Sorry._

_- Tony_

Within minutes, her fingers flew across the screen of her tablet sending emails to her programming team to notify them of the new presenter being added to the weekend's program. A groan slipped through her lips as she tried to remember her previous encounter with Hammer, furious with herself for not slapping him. The phone in her maroon pants pocket sprang to life, causing her to jump at the sound. Quickly she pulled the object out and glanced at the screen to check the caller id, Pepper Potts

"Are you coming to Tony's birthday party tonight?" The woman asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there. My flight leaves in three hours," Aria informed her. "I wish we could have agreed to open the Stark Expo a month later. There are so many things I would have done differently."

"Tony is quite impatient at times. I don't know how I ever put up with him," Pepper laughed.

Aria stood up from the bench with the tablet in her hand and her phone to her ear, "I feel like if Tony doesn't calm down, I'm going to have an emotional breakdown."

"You'll be alright. Just maybe slow down on the alcohol a little," she suggested.

"I'm not an alcoholic," Aria replied flatly.

"I never said you were. Aria, I care about you," Pepper pleaded.

"Maybe you should worry about my brother or perhaps the company he decided to give you to run," Aria snarled, her fingers grazing the screen to end the call.

Within seconds the phone was back up to her ear, "Sharon, can you have the car pick me up by the main entrance?"

"I'm on my way," Sharon replied.

Once again, Aria quickly ended the call. Instead of meandering about to ensure the expo was clean and running smoothly, she walked swiftly and with a purpose. Her long hair fluttered behind her, causing her to look slightly menacing.

* * *

Pepper stood on the tarmac waiting next to the Phantom Rolls Royce for the passengers of the private jet to disembark. The wind had picked up as the ginger stood outside. Within minutes the door of the jet opened and Aria, followed by Sharon, exited the plane. Looking out, the brunette noticed her friend standing in the wind. Aria quickly descended the stairs as her long hair whipped around her face.

"I'm glad you made it," Pepper grinned, Happy opening the car door for Aria.

"Me too. Let's hope my opinion doesn't change," Aria grimaced.

Sharon, Happy, and Pepper quickly climbed into the car. The vehicle took off smoothly, offering no bumps are vibrations for discomfort. Aria was still dressed in her outfit from earlier, maroon dress pants with a cream colored top paired with black boots. Pepper had taken to a new style for her title of CEO, a black dress and black heels causing her to look the part.

"What do you mean by that?" Pepper inquired.

"It's Tony's birthday. Every year since I've lived with him he gets borderline blackout drunk. Depending on who he has at this party, it could be horrifying," she explained.

Pepper let out a sigh of relief, their phone call from earlier still fresh in her mind. "What are you going to wear tonight?" Pepper asked, wanting to stay away from the subject of drinking.

"I found this cute blue cocktail dress and these heels. I assume you'll be wearing something tight, black, and sexy?" Aria laughed.

"Possibly," Pepper winked.

* * *

"Natalie," Aria grinned, nodding her head in greeting.

"Miss Stark," the woman replied, mimicking Aria's actions.

"Happy Birthday Tony!" Aria replied as she crept into her brother's room.

His attention had been in front of him, swapping out the core on his arc reactor.

"This isn't what it looks like," he quickly replied as soon as his sister saw him.

"Are you okay," she asked, her smile slipping.

"Uh, sure," Tony answered quickly. "What's in your hand?"

"What's in yours and why was it smoking? Tony that isn't good," Aria replied just as quickly.

"It's my birthday, can we just be happy please? I'll explain tomorrow. Promise," he sighed. "Now what's that?"

"Your birthday present," Aria smiled, handing the envelope over to him.

Tony opened the card, an image of Iron Man was on the front with the words 'Happy Birthday'. The card was originally intended for a young child, but she knew that her brother would enjoy it more. His hands opened the card and read the message 'Have A Super Birthday!', which caused him to laugh. On the left side of the card was an address in New York.

"What's this?" He asked, pointing to the address.

"You know how you were talking about building your own tower in New York? That building and it's property went on sale over a month ago. It went off the market two weeks ago and it is now yours. The lawyers have all the paperwork, I'd consult with them before designing your tower. Happy birthday," she explained.

"I don't know if I can out do this for your birthday this year!" He joked, pulling her into a hug. "I love It, I really do."

"Good, I'm going to go down to the party. Hopefully you'll come down and have some fun!" She grinned, skipping out of his room.

Tony placed the card in front of his mirror. His hands lingering over it as his gaze shifted to the arc reactor core box. With his impending fate looming overhead, he trotted down the staircase, and went directly to the bar.

An hour and a half later Tony had somehow wound up in his Iron Man suit. Aria was already on her third Long Island Ice Tea and had just accepted an invitation to pose for Play Boy magazine. as she finished off her third drink, Pepper's words from earlier in the day came back to haunt her. She decided to be responsible and spend time with Pepper, hoping someday she would legally be her took off to look for Pepper, but instead found her walking into the main room.

"Oh no, What is Tony doing?" Aria asked as she approached the ginger.

"Whatever it is, it isn't going to be good," Pepper sighed.

Tony had caused the party to become even rowdier. The scantily clad women became even more careless and promiscuous.

"Hey Pepper, Aria," Rhodey greeted.

"I'm going to go get some air. Your coming with Aria," Pepper told the man. "I don't know what to do."

"You gotta be kidding me," Rhodey replied as Pepper led them to where they could view Tony from the back of the room.

"That's it," Rhodey replied, turning to leave the house. "Pepper this is ridiculous. I just stuck my neck out for this guy."

"I know," she said, trying to calm him down. "I know, I get it. I'm going to go handle it, okay? Just let me handle it."

"Then handle it," he told her, anger in his tone. "Or I'm gonna have to."

"Sorry you aren't able to enjoy the party," Aria squeaked.

"You shouldn't be apologizing for Tony's actions. You're the responsible one," Rhodey stated.

"That's why I'm apologizing, because he never will," she replied grimly.

"You know, the question I get asked most often is, "Tony, how do you go to the bathroom in the suit?" Tony paused, closing his eyes. "Just like that."

"Does this guy know how to throw a party or what?," Pepper asked, earning cheers from the party goers.

Tony leaned into the mic that was once in has hands and now in Pepper's, "I love you."

"Unbelievable," Pepper laughed while the crowd still cheered. "Thank you Tony, we all thank you so much for such a wonderful night and were gonna say goodnight now and thank you all for coming."

"No no no, wait, we can't. We haven't had er cut the cake. We didn't blow out the candles," Tony drunkenly rambled to her.

"You're out of control, okay?" Pepper murmured to Tony

Tony stared at the woman, obviously drunk, "I'm not out of control."

"Trust me on this, one," she replied to her friend, desperate for him to listen to her.

"You're out of control gorgeous," he shot back in an attempt to be witty.

"It's time to go to bed. It's time," Pepper informed him

"Come on, you know you want to," Tony grinned, leaning in to kiss her. "Give me another smooch."

"You're not going to be happy about this," she told him.

"Come on, you know you want to," he pleaded.

"You just peed in the suit," Pepper pointed out.

"I know, it has a filtration system," he explained.

"It's not sexy," She stated.

"You could drink that water," Tony explained to the woman.

"Just send everyone home okay? It's time to," she instructed Tony.

"If you say so," Tony complied.

"Okay," Pepper confirmed, starting to swap,the champaign bottle in his hands for the mic in hers. "You take this and I'll take this."

"She's right. The party's over. Then again, the party was over for me, like, an hour and a half ago. The after party starts in 15 fifteen minutes," Tony walked forward towards the crowd. "And if anybody, Pepper, doesn't like it, there's the door."

Tony raised his hand, accidentally shooting off a repulse blast. Pepper quickly moved towards Aria's side while Tony began to show off his suit's power by having women toss things into the air to blow up. Aria grabbed the woman's arm, her hand shaking. The ginger lead her closer to the wall while Rhodey ran off towards the garage. Five minutes later, Rhodey emerged in an unpainted Iron Man suit.

"I'm only going to say this once. Get out!" Rhodey announced to the guests, causing them to run in panic. "You don't deserve to wear one of these. Shut it down!"

"Goldstein," Tony said, starting to stand.

"Yes, Mr. Stark?" The dj replied while peeking up from behind laptop.

"Give me phat beat to beat my buddy's ass to," Tony laughed.

Rhodey advanced on Tony, the two then went flying backwards. The sound of destruction echoed from the hole in the wall. Aria quickly followed Pepper as Both of their assistants approached them.

"Natalie, I'm on to you," Pepper accused the woman.

Before Natalie had time to reply, Tony and Rhodey came crashing into the room. Sharon had pulled Aria towards her while Pepper shrieked and Natalie went on the defensive. Happy came bursting in through the doors and grabbed Pepper to bring her to safety. The two SHIELD agents decided to leave through the back, taking Aria with them for safe keeping.

They all climbed into Agents Romanoff's Audi. As the agent driving started to pull out of the drive way, Aria glanced back in time to watch a good portion of the windows to shatter.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you to those who have reviewed and read the previous chapter! I'm sorry if the end was a little weird, I was very tired and in an odd moo****d. Luckily though I was able to be inspired for this story and weaving things in here**** and there for future sequels. This chapter is being written more precisely now, hopefully. Enjoy! **

* * *

Aria waited in the foyer of the safe house she had been taken to the previous night. She stood wearing a grey coach dress with knee high, black boots. Her hair flowed freely while a pair of matte black sunglasses rested atop her hand. While the young woman waited for everyone else, before they were to surprise her brother, her hands fidgeted with the ring she always wore on her right finger. It was a simple platinum band with MC+BB engraved on the inside and a sapphire embedded into it. Aria was told that the ring was a promise ring given to her mother, but the man who gave it to her died before they got married.

Nick Fury walked past her, signaling to her that it was time. Agent Romanoff followed after him wearing her black leather suit while Agent Carter simply dressed in a pantsuit with a cream colored shirt. The three SHIELD personnel all had their issued guns strapped to their sides.

Director Fury drove them to Randy's Donuts. He parked the SUV behind the restaurant allowing Agents Carter and Romanoff to empty the building. Aria waited in the SUV with a small briefcase. Once the two agents returned, Romanoff escorted Aria inside.

"We've secured the perimeter, but I don't think we should hold it much longer," Agent Romanoff informed the director, earning a look of shock from Tony.

"Huh! You're... fired," Tony groaned, looking at his secretary.

"That's not up to you," she retorted.

"Tony, I want you to meet Agent Romanoff.

"I'm a SHIELD shadow. Once we knew you were ill I was tasked to you by Director Fury," the agent explained.

"I expect you to apologize. And you, please tell me you're not SHIELD," he stated, as Aria dragged a chair up to the booth.

"Not officially. Just some contract work," Aria laughed.

"You've been very busy. You made your girl your CEO, you're giving away all your stuff. You let your friend fly away with your suit. Now, if I know better," Fury started to lecture.

"You don't know better. I didn't give it to him. He took it," Tony stated.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. He took it? You're Iron Man and he just took it? The little brother walked in there, kicked your ass and took your suit? Is that possible?" Director Fury asked the woman next to him.

"Well, according to Mr. Stark's database security guidelines, there are redundancies to prevent unauthorized usage," Natasha informed the director.

"What do you want from me?" Tony demanded as Agent Romanoff left the table.

"What do we want from you? Uh-uh. What do you want from me? You have become a problem, a problem I have to deal with. Contrary to your belief, you are not the center of my universe. I have bigger problems in the southwest region to deal with. Hit him!" Director Fury instructed.

Natasha had then reappeared and injected Tony with a chemical compound. The sudden action caused him to yelp which caused Aria to jump in surprise.

"Oh, God, are you gonna steal my kidney and sell it? Could you please not do anything awful for five seconds? What did she just do to me?" Tony groaned.

"What did we just do *for* you? That's lithium dioxide. It's gonna take the edge off," Fury explained while Romanoff pulled the clothe under his suit back for them to view the crossroad veins on his neck disappear. "We're trying to get you back to work."

Tony pulled away from them and looked at the director, "Give me a couple boxes of that. I'll be right as rain."

"It's not a cure, it just abates the symptoms," Romanoff informed him

"Doesn't look like it's gonna be an easy fix," Fury pointed out.

"I wish you would have told me about this," Aria murmured as they got up to leave. "Have you told Pepper?"

"No. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. We're just not that sort of family. We don't have those heart-to-heart talks," he argued.

"We're not much of a family are we?" Aria threw at him, watching his face fall. "I'm flying back to New York tonight. At least one Stark needs to actually be a productive member of society."

"Fly safe," Tony said, hoping she'd soften up.

Instead Aria ignored her brother and left him standing in the restaurant as Agent Romanoff and Director Fury followed her out.

* * *

Unlocking her the door to her home in New York, she spotted a black duffle laying by the front door. Immediately her hand went straight to her phone to call Agent Carter in case she needed assistance. She quietly crept through the first floor, stopping outside of the kitchen as she heard the clinking of glasses.

"Suprise?" Grant smiled, holding a glass of wine out to her.

"Why can't you ever just call or text me to let me know your here?" Aria sighed.

"I can't really tell people who I care about where I'll be incase someone comes after me," he confessed.

Aria took the glass out of his hand and took a sip. She stared at the man before lacing the fingers of her free hand with his. He pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arm around her.

"I saw what happens in Malibu on the internet. There are videos all over YouTube," Grant mentioned. "I hope everything is okay between you and your brother."

"I don't know. He's just so reckless! I don't know what to do about him. The man is fifteen years older than me. How do I tell him how to act?" Aria cried out, burying her face in his chest.

"Communication is important. Just tell him how you feel," he offered.

"I found out this morning that his arc reactor, the thing that's been keeping him alive, has been killing him!" She exclaimed, tears starting to prickle at her eyes. "All I've ever wanted was a family or just someone who cares about me and trusts me."

"You've got me. Maybe I could tell you about one or two of my past missions," Grant suggested, taking a sip of his wine.

"I'd like that," Aria replied shyly.

Grant tilted his head down and captured her lips with his. Clumsily, she placed her glass to the side of her while Grant did the same. He swiftly lifted her onto the counter, stepping in between her legs while never breaking their kiss. Aria's hands wandered to the hem of his shirt, pulling it up over his head and blindly tossing it to the floor.

"Patience is a virtue," Grant murmured before he recaptured her lips.

He leaned forward, placing his hands on her legs and slipping them under her skirt.

"Are we really gonna do this in the kitchen?" Aria breathed, looking up at him through her eyelashes.

"Be adventurous," he grinned, placing his lips on her neck.

"I'm a Stark. We're adventurous by nature," she moaned.

* * *

Unlocking her the door to her home in New York, she spotted a black duffle laying by the front door. Immediately her hand went straight to her phone to call Agent Carter in case she needed assistance. She quietly crept through the first floor, stopping outside of the kitchen as she heard the clinking of glasses.

"Suprise?" Grant smiled, holding a glass of wine out to her.

"Why can't you ever just call or text me to let me know your here?" Aria sighed.

"I can't really tell people who I care about where I'll be incase someone comes after me," he confessed.

Aria took the glass out of his hand and took a sip. She stared at the man before lacing the fingers of her free hand with his. He pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arm around her.

"I saw what happens in Malibu on the internet. There are videos all over YouTube," Grant mentioned. "I hope everything is okay between you and your brother."

"I don't know. He's just so reckless! I don't know what to do about him. The man is fifteen years older than me. How do I tell him how to act?" Aria cried out, burying her face in his chest.

"Communication is important. Just tell him how you feel," he offered.

"I found out this morning that his arc reactor, the thing that's been keeping him alive, has been killing him!" She exclaimed, tears starting to prickle at her eyes. "All I've ever wanted was a family or just someone who cares about me and trusts me."

"You've got me. Maybe I could tell you about one or two of my past missions," Grant suggested, taking a sip of his wine.

"I'd like that," Aria replied shyly.

Grant tilted his head down and captured her lips with his. Clumsily, she placed her glass to the side of her while Grant did the same. He swiftly lifted her onto the counter, stepping in between her legs while never breaking their kiss. Aria's hands wandered to the hem of his shirt, pulling it up over his head and blindly tossing it to the floor.

"Patience is a virtue," Grant murmured before he recaptured her lips.

He leaned forward, placing his hands on her legs and slipping them under her skirt.

"Are we really gonna do this in the kitchen?" Aria breathed, looking up at him through her eyelashes.

"Be adventurous," he grinned, placing his lips on her neck.

"I'm a Stark. We're adventurous by nature," she moaned.

The morning light shone in through the cracks of the curtains. Echoing throughout the duplex, Aria's phone fought for her attention. During the fourth attempt, Aria's head poked out from underneath the pristine white comforter. She slowly moved from the bed, only to have the arm around her waist pull her back.

"Where do you think you're going," Grant mumbled into her hair.

"My phone is going off. Someone needs me," Aria replied, not trying to pull away from him.

"But I need you here," he whined.

"And you've had me since I came home Saturday. It's Monday morning, I need to go to work," she countered, once again moving to get out of bed.

She slipped out of bed and grabbed the black silk bathrobe from inside her bathroom. Her feet padded down the hallway towards her office. The phone was sitting in its charging bay next to her computer. Her hand shot out towards the smooth object, her fingers skimming over the surface, scrolling over the names of the missed calls. Before she could dial a number, the phone sprang to life as _Sharon Carter_ appeared on the screen along with her smiling picture.

"Are you going to show up to work today or did Ward tire you out?" Sharon teased.

"Ha ha. Can you have the car pick me up in two hours? The two of us could go get pizza or wherever, then head into the office later," Aria offered.

"Two hours," Carter confirmed before she ended the call.

Aria promptly returned to her bedroom only to find her bed empty and the shower running.

* * *

The car ride from Carnegie Deli to Stark Expo was quick, traffic at a minimum even through the normally busier parts of town. Sharon had pulled out her Stark Industries issued tablet and started to inform her boss of important messages that came in during the morning.

"I received a call this morning from Hammer Industries. They need the stage altered and Justin Hammer would like to send a team out to modify the main stage on Thursday. He also will be there and requests your presence. Google would like the unused pavilion in the northwest quadrant. And Pepper called this morning to see how you were doing," Sharon listed, occasionally looking over at Aria.

Aria sighed and let her head fall back into the headrest, "if Hammer is going to be there, then I need you there. No matter what he says, you are to not leave my side."

The two carried on the conversation as the car pulled up to the administrative offices of Stark Expo. When the two reached Aria's office, Sharon locked the door, giving them privacy.

"Have you read the packet on your involvement in Captain America's rehabilitation yet?" Sharon asked

"I skimmed it," Aria replied, pouring herself a scotch.

"Skimmed it? It's currently ahead of schedule, so you'll need to delve into the information and be ready when it's your turn to come in," she lectured.

"And what is my role in this project?" Aria questioned, the cocky Stark trait shining through.

"Helping him to adjust," Sharon answered. "I had to reschedule your meeting this morning with Apple to 2 pm today. Oh look, it's almost 2. I'll go find them."

"Today was going so great and then bam! I managed to piss her off," Aria mumbled into her glass as her assistant left.


	5. Chapter 5

**First off, thank you to everyone for sticking with me on this story. I lost motivation for quite a while, had finals, and got a job. I've started to write a different story when I lose motivation for my Aria 'Verse. Also the great news of Agent Peggy Carter getting her own show will help me out the next story and possibly even adding a sequel or making it longer than planned. Either way, woo! I hope you enjoy the story, I apologize if it feels a little forced, I had problems with motivation.**

* * *

Aria Stark hard spent her half day at work attempting to accomplish something and be productive. Unfortunately for her, she did nothing useful. When five pm rolled around she had already gathered her belongings and was getting ready to leave. She collected her items and strolled out of the office building. On her way to the car out front a little girl with blonde pigtails ran from her mother towards Aria.

"Miss Stawk!" she shouted, a grin plastered on her face.

Aria scowl turned to a smile as the little girl threw her arms around Aria's waist.

"I'm so sorry," the little girl's mother apologized.

"It's alright," Aria told her. "What's your name sweetheart?"

"Wachel," she grinned, the mother mouthing 'Rachel'.

"Are you having fun Rachel?" Aria asked, kneeling down to her level.

"Yup! I wanna be like you when I'm an adult! I wanna build wobots and make the wowld a better place!" Rachel informed the young woman.

"Oh really? How old are you?" Aria asked.

"Seven!" She exclaimed, holding up seven fingers.

Aria stood and walked the little girl back to her mother, "I have a scholarship program for young women for girls like your daughter. Here's my card, email your information to me and I would very much like to help her accomplish her dreams."

Rachel's mother stared at Aria, tears forming in her eyes, "you don't know how much this means to us."

"Well, she has to prove that she deserves it, that means good grades. If she can start learning any coding or programming languages now, then that will help her in the future. Depending on how well she performs in high school and college, she might have a job waiting for her at Stark Industries," Aria told her mother.

The woman broke down into tears as she threw her arms around Aria, "Thank you! Thank you so much."

"We've got to take care of our future and Rachel here looks like she's going to be a tech genius!" Aria replied, slowly pulling away from the woman. "I don't mean to be rude, but I really must be off. I have some paperwork I must look over at home."

"Of course, yes. Thank you!" The older woman said.

"Goodbye Miss Stawk! Thank You!" Rachel grinned, waving as Aria left.

Aria begun feeling significantly better about herself. She fished her phone out of her purse, fingers already flying across the screen. As the phone rung, she pressed it against her ear.

"Sharon," Aria said, walking towards the waiting car.

"Yes Miss Stark," she replied coldly.

"I want to apologize for today. I feel like I haven't been myself lately. It's possibly the stress of this expo and my brother and Hammer and Shield and Grant and everything is getting to me. I'm only twenty three!" Aria ranted, climbing into the car. "Please forgive me."

"I don't think I could stay upset with you Aria. You try your best, and I think there is some Stark gene in you that turns on and you start acting a certain way when you get stressed. Take a break," Sharon replied.

"Thanks. Just so you know, I'm going to look over the file tonight and make a plan of action to how I'm going to deal with my assignment. I'll be ready for when my time comes," she further explained.

"I'm excited to hear this. I have to go, Agent Coulson is calling me," Sharon responded.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Aria bid farewell.

The call had ended only half way during Aria's journey home. She spent the rest of the time staring out the window and contemplating her life. Perhaps drugs could help her? Her mind flitted through the many possibilities: Adderall, marijuana, or maybe not. She knew she needed to fix herself, but wasn't sure how. When the car finally stopped, an idea flew into her head. Aria raced through her building and up anxiously bounced on the balls of her feet during her ride in the elevator. Softly, she padded to her door, unlocked it and entered; finding the person she needed to talk to most waiting for her.

"Hey beautiful," Grant complimented, handing her a scotch.

"Hey. Um, can we talk," Aria requested.

She sat down on the couch facing the window, Grant joining her.

"What's up?" He inquired, taking a sip of his own drink.

"You know I love you, but do you see a future for us? Growing old together and having kids?" She asked.

"I don't really see kids at the moment, but I do," Grant grinned.

"You are a Shield agent. You can't guarantee that you'll come back from your missions alive. Right now in my life, I need that. I need to know that the man in my life will be there when I need him, I need that security," Aria slowly explained.

Ward stared at her, a slight expression of hurt lacing his words, "Are you breaking up with me?"

"You may be Mister Right, but you're just not Mister Right Now. I'm sorry for the cheesey line, but that's how I feel," she said, tears gathering in her eyes. "I still love you, but I just need that security in my stressful life."

"If that's what you want, I'll respect you're decision. I won't say that I'm not hurt," he confessed, downing the rest of his drink. "But you seem just as hurt as I am. That and you aren't giving me some bullshit explanation. Maybe I'll see you 'round the Triskelion."

"Maybe," Aria repeated.

Grant Ward walked out of the room and minutes later walked out of the penthouse with his duffle in hand. She placed the untouched drink on the bar and stalked up to her bedroom, scared to see the change in it. The moment she stepped into her bedroom, she could feel a difference in the air. It was colder, but more clear. Aria took no time in retrieving the file on Captain Rogers from the safe in her office, laying it on her desk.

* * *

The alarm on Aria's phone went off at exactly half past six in the morning. She shot up from her hunched over position at her desk. Her hand reached over to the phone's charging base and turned the alarm off. As she stood up, she peeled a sticky note off her face, confused about how it got there. Five minutes past eight, the young woman left her penthouse her purse slung over her shoulder and a black, leather attaché case in her left hand. She ended up wearing a burgundy dress with black heels, her hair twisted up. Sharon was waiting outside her building, standing by the waiting car.

"Miss Stark," Sharon greeted.

"Good morning Sharon," Aria grinned.

"You seem to be in a good mood," Sharon observed as the two women climbed into the car.

"I've been working on improving myself. I also broke up with Grant last night," she divulged.

"What! Really? How did he take it? How are you then about this?" Sharon inquired.

"I legitimately feel good. I think he took it like a champ. I probably hurt him, but we went our desperate ways. I didn't see a future with him," Aria further explained.

"How about that file I suggested you to look at then?" The assistant questioned.

"I'd like to talk with you're aunt. Learn from her about him. I feel like I could help him get aquatinted to our time better if I can get a good grasp on who he is and how he is," Aria explained. "I don't really understand why Shield doesn't want him to be with a psychologist during the period."

"Steve knew your father, he worked with him. We want him to feel comfortable," Sharon replied. "He fell asleep over 60 years ago. Fury felt that Tony wouldn't be as understanding and patient with him as you would be."

"Yeah, I can see that. Also what with his huge ego and all. Hopefully I'll be able to help," she sighed.

* * *

"Do you think we could get a golf cart or something?" Sharon joked as the two walked towards the main stage.

"Maybe I'll build something," Aria laughed. "Plus, walking is great for you! Keeps you healthy!"

"Justin Hammer is going to be here today. You know that right?" The blonde asked.

"I will not let him ruin my good mood. If I have to, I'll let my signature Stark charm shine through," Aria quipped.

The two approached the stage, stopping at a distance. They observed Hammer, strutting around the stage, occasional stopping to talk with the lead engineer about how he wants the stage to look for his presentation. Aria started laughing at how ridiculous he looked, Sharon trying to fight the laughter.

"He looks so ridiculous!" Aria said, trying to keep her voice from getting too loud.

"I don't understand how the government ever gave this man a contract!" Sharon added, laughing quite loudly now.

"Aria Stark!" Hammer shouted from the stage. "Hey!"

"Fuck," Aria groaned, dragging out the vowel. "He spotted us."

Justin Hammer strode towards them wearing a pristine white button down shirt, grey slack, and black dress shoes. The man had on glasses, which Aria thought that it didn't make him look any more intelligent than he actually was.

"Hello Hammer," Aria greeted, forcing herself to continue with her cheerful mood.

"It's a lovely day, even more so now that you're here," he flirted, mistaking her cheerfulness.

"Well, you've got my engineer changing my main stage. I just wanted to check in and make sure everything is going smoothly," she replied.

"Are you sure you didn't just come here to see me?" Hammer grinned, winking.

"Nope. Just checking in on _my_ expo's stage. I like to oversee all modifications on all the important features that are my responsibility," Aria smugly answered.

"Well, you've done a beautiful job on creating this expo," he complimented, moving to stand closer to her. "Maybe you'll be able to give me a tour."

"I'm afraid Miss Stark has appointments scheduled for the next month. Sorry," Sharon informed him.

"Maybe I could take you out to lunch sometime?" Justin offered.

"We'll see," Aria vaguely answered.

Hammer turned to face her as he walked backwards towards the stage, "That's not a no. By the way, you look beautiful today."

Justin Hammer turned around and continued to walk away, leaving the two women by themselves. As Aria opened her mouth to speak, Sharon's phone rang. After checking the caller id, she excused herself, walking a few feet away from the other woman. Aria tried in vain to listen to what was being said but was unsuccessful in her attempt.

Sharon returned to Aria, ending the call in the process, "It seems tomorrow is my last day in your service. The agency can't send anyone out until Monday."

"Ah, I see your time has come," Aria commented.

Sharon led them away from the arena they were in and headed back towards the offices, "They are relocating me. I am required to go through extensive medical training."

"What if I need someone for Friday night? Hammer's 'Salute'," She asked, using finger quotes for the word salute. "To be honest with you, I'm not capable of holding my own. I can't do what you do. I don't even know how to hold a gun!"

"Everyone can hold a gun. I can show you. Possibly even teach you how to shoot one. I always have one concealed on myself at all times," Sharon explained, causing Aria to stop.

"You've always had a concealed weapon on you? How, what?" She stammered.

"Come on, not in public. Aria, you will not panic. I don't want a repeat of yesterday. You're in a good place and I want you to stay there. Maybe I'll convince Hill to come and work for you. You'd love her," the blonde explained, dragging Aria along by her arm.

"I need a vacation. Somewhere where no one can find me," Aria said, running a hand down her face. "Or possibly a drink could hold me over."


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you to every one who has read, reviewed, and/or favorited this story. The attention that it receives means a lot to me. Sorry I haven't been updating frequently. I've started a new job and I'm working a lot. As this story is nearing the end of the Iron Man 2 films, I'm going to keep it going with some involvement of the Captain. I'm not sure if I want to post chapters from this story and the next one ****_Former Allies_**** simultaneously or if I want to finish this first and then post _Former Allies_. What do you guys think?**

**To the FaithfulReader92 - I've been tempted for a while to write a different story once I'm done with the Aria saga that features a Justin Hammer/OC. **

**I hope you all enjoy! And I'll try to add chapters quicker.**

* * *

"It's Miss Potts," Sharon whispered, handing the phone to Aria.

The two were touring the Expo, ensuring that the attractions were running smoothly. They were currently watching a video about NASA's experiments in space along with a group of fifth graders from an elementary school in Brooklyn. The young brunette slipped out of the room and into an empty hallway.

"Hey Pepper, how's Cali?" Aria asked

"Tony is driving me crazy. I don't know how much longer I can deal with Tony," Pepper said quickly.

"You've been dealing with him longer than I have. I don't really know what to tell you," She replied. "What's he been up to lately?"

"Well, he just brought me strawberries and attempted to apologize," Pepper sighed.

"Um, aren't you allergic to strawberries?" Aria cautiously asked.

"I am! He's out of control," she exclaimed, leaving an awkward pause. "Natalie, Happy, and I will be flying out tomorrow morning. We'll head over to the expo once we land."

"Sounds good. I'll give Tony a call to see how he's doing. Maybe I can figure out why he's like this," Aria commented, closing her eyes and bringing her hand up to her head. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Bye Aria," Pepper sighed.

"Bye Pepper," Aria replied, ending the call.

Aria sighed, opening her eyes. Sharon had appeared in front of her, waiting to her the west coast update.

"So," Sharon started.

"Tony is driving Pepper crazy. I need to call him to check up on him," Aria explained, leading the two out of the building. "Probably has something to do with his new lease on life."

"His what?" Sharon asked.

"It's nothing. Fury lectured Tony the other morning, threatened him and such," Aria lied.

"Ah, the usual Fury," Sharon laughed.

"Do you really have to go?" Aria asked. "Is there anyway I can keep you for a little bit longer?"

"I really have to go. Romanoff will be here tomorrow, so if you need anything you can ask her," Sharon answered, disappointment laced throughout her tone.

The two finally reached Aria's office, Aria quickly moving towards her desk.

"I got something for you," Aria sheepishly grinned. "A sort of 'going away' and 'thank you' gift for helping me for the past ten months."

"You shouldn't have," Sharon commented.

"Actually I didn't get it, I made it," she quietly added, handing the box the the blonde.

Upon opening it she found in the box a watch, with Stark Industries on the face. It had a black leather band with sterling silver clasp. The face had thin black numbers and hands.

"It's beautiful, thank you. It seems a bit thin though, I feel like I'm going to break it," Sharon replied, putting the watch on.

"I wanted it to be light and look classy. The glass on the face is actually solar glass, so it doesn't ever need a battery," Aria explained. "I always thought watches looked classy and were a timeless accessory."

The pun made the two laugh, "Thank you for this. If you have any problems just call me and I'll do whatever I can to help."

"Thank you," Aria responded.

"Goodbye," Sharon said, pulling Aria into a hug.

"Bye," Aria whispered, hugging the blonde tightly.

As they let go, Sharon moved towards the door, shutting it as she left. The young Stark moved towards the window and watched the attendees of the Stark Expo mill around. She stayed there until the sun had set, watching the lights outside turn on. Aria called her driver moments after to pick her up, leaving her some time to explore the grounds. After grabbing her purse, she strolled out of the building and through the expo. Even though it was a Thursday night, the expo was busy. The amount of strollers ad children running around almost clogged up the sidewalks.

Her driver stood by her door, waiting for her to arrive. As she approached the car the door was opened, allowing her to quickly slide in. The driver returned to his seat in the car and pulled out of the parking lot. Aria dug her phone out of her purse, fingers quickly skimming the device. She brought it up to her ear and waited as the line rang. She waited and waited, the call going to voicemail.

"Tony, it's me. Call me as soon as you can. I want to know how you're doing after I saw you last. Okay, bye," she ended the message awkwardly.

* * *

Aria was dressed in a navy blue, form fitting dress with cap sleeves. Her hair flowed in curls down her back while a pair of black stilettos adorned her feet. The only jewelry she wore was her mothers old ring. She new that she wouldn't be able to return back to her penthouse later to change, so she showed up to work dressed for the evening's affair. When she arrived at the expo in the morning, the atmosphere felt electric. Visitors were already arriving early than normal to explore, then stay for Hammer's Military Salute. She quickly navigated her way through the crowds and towards her office, narrowly avoiding numerous strollers.

As she reached the administrative building, the phone in her purse sprang to life. Her hand fished around in her purse for the small object as the ringtone grew louder. Her name was Lola, she was a showgirl. With yellow feathers in her hair, and a dress cut down to there. Just before the song cut off she answered the device.

"Good morning Phil," she greeted, opening the door to the building with her free hand.

"He's awake," Agent Phil Coulson replied.

"Have you met him yet?" Aria giddily asked.

"No, Fury has me in New Mexico right now. Soon I hope," he responded.

"Can I ask what you're up to in New Mexico?" She prodded, hitting the button for the elevator.

"You can ask," Coulson answered. "But I'm not allowed to divulge the information."

"Please! I'm a Shield Legacy! I'm not Tony! I actually know how to keep a secret," Aria implored, stepping into the lift. "I won't tell anyone!"

"Sorry," he replied. "No can do."

"Alright Coulson. Thanks for the heads up. Do you know when they'll need me then?" She inquired, stepping out of the elevator and walking towards her office.

"Maybe within a week or two," Coulson informed her. "I've got to go, something is happening."

"Have fun in the 'Land of Enchantment'. Bye Coulson," Aria laughed, bringing the phone down from her ear and ending the call.

The young woman strolled into her office, glancing at the television hung up on her wall. It displayed a constantly changing layout of the expo, how many days it has left, and the current number of attendees. With a grin, Aria Stark sat down at her desk and began her morning of work.

After three hours of working in her office and six interviews with magazines, online blogs, and a skype lecture with ParisTech about specific engineering topics, a knock on her door reverberated throughout her office.

"Entrer s'il vous plaît," Aria called out, not looking away from her computer screen.

The sound of two pairs of heeled footsteps sounded in the room.

"How did you end up being the more responsible Stark?" Pepper grinned.

"Pepper! Hi!" Aria greeted, rushing from her desk to hug her friend. "What time is it? Two? Three?"

"It's three oh five," Pepper's assistant answered.

"Thank you," Aria smiled. "Have you two eaten? I've invited the best food trucks in all of New York to come out today."

"We ate on the plane," Pepper replied. I still have some work I'd like to finish before tonight."

"Yeah, use my office. I'm about to head out and grab some food. I'd like to visit some of the buildings and make sure they're operating smoothly. I'll see you two later," Aria informed the two.

The young brunette grabbed her purse and phone, bounding out of the office and outside towards the sunlight and fresh air.

At 4 pm Aria stood by the back entrance to the main stage, monitoring the delivery of Hammer's Drones. Five large, armored semi trucks were open, and the contents being taken out. Four at a time were delivered down to a service elevator where they were all being delivered below the stage to prep for the evening's affair. She watched from her spot, a black SUV pull up, Justin Hammer climbing out of the back.

"You're doing a great job. I have a meeting with Pepper in a few minutes," Aria told the stage manager, handing him a clipboard with the details and specs of Hammer's drones.

She took off through the building and out a side door, bumping into a group of tech fanboys trying to get a glimpse of what was happening inside. Before they could grill her for answers she excused herself and quickly walked towards the administrative offices, hoping to catch Pepper before she left for dinner.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you so much to everyone who has favorited, reviewed, and/or placed this story on alert. I really do love it when I receive reviews. I'm still unsure of when I want to start posting the next story or how I'm going to deliver the rest of this story (The meeting of Cap). I have a short description of the next story on my profile page.**

**There is a bit of language towards the end, but it's not just thrown in there to be thrown in.**

**enjoy!**

* * *

Aria was waiting backstage with a headset placed on her head. The sound of AC/DC emitted from her phone on the table I front of her. She pushed the headset down to her neck and answered the device.

"Finally calling me back Tony?" She asked, irritation seeping through her words.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I was a little busy. Where are you?" Tony replied, the sound of air rushing round him making him a little hard to hear.

"Where do you think? This expo is my baby and I'm not going to let Hammer prance about without supervision," she answered.

"Aria, I need you to trust me. Get out of there," Tony stated.

"I can't just leave. I have people depending on me here. I can't just go running off when you want me to," Aria fought.

"Hammer is working with Ivan Vanko, the guy who tried to kill me in Monaco. I don't know what's going to happen tonight, but I need you to leave the expo," he explained.

"Tony, I gotta go. I'll talk to you later," Aria fumed, ending the call.

After placing the phone back on the table in front of her, she slipped the headset back onto her head. Her attention, at the moment, was on a screen while the drone technician finished explaining everything that was going to happen.

"Here to wish me luck?" Hammer smirked, walking up to Aria.

"Here to make sure whatever you have planned doesn't hurt my expo," Aria retorted.

"Whatever you say," he winked, heading towards the side of the stage.

Within minutes music started to play through the speakers, Hammer dancing out to the middle of the stage.

"Yeah, that's what I'm talking about! Thanks for coming. Ladies and gentlemen, for far too long this country had to place it's brave women in harm's way. Then the Iron Man arrived and we thought the days of losing lives were behind us. Sadly that technology was kept out of reach. That's not fair, that's not right, and it's just too bad. Regardless it was an impressive innovation, one that grabbed headlines the world over. But today my friends, the press is faced with quite a different problem. They are about to run out of ink. Ladies and gentlemen, today I present to you the new face of the United States Military; The Hammer Drone! Army. Navy. Air Force. Marines," Justin Hammer presented. "That's a hell of a lot better than some cheerleaders, Let me tell ya. As revolutionary as this technology is, there will always be a need for man to be present in the theater of war. Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to present to you the very first prototype in the Variable Threat Air Response Battle Suit and it's pilot Air Force Lieutenant Cornel James Rhodes!"

Aria rushed to the side of the the stage, needing to visually confirm that Rhodey was part of Hammer's presentation she held her breath as one of her brother's suits, but with a few modifications. Rhodey raised his right arm to salute, the drones behind him mimicking the movement.

"The fuck?" Aria muttered staring at her friend.

"For America and it's allies, Hammer Industries," Hammer started, but stopped as soon as Iron Man entered his eye sight.

Iron Man flew towards the stage, creating a spectacular entrance. As he landed in the very front of the stage, the crowd went wild.

"We've got trouble," Tony informed his friend, turning to join him at his side.

"Tony, there are civilians present," Rhodey warned his friend. "I'm on orders. Let's not of this right now."

"Let's give them a wave," he replied.

"Hey, alright," Hammer said, moving to retake the focus of the presentation. "Yeah, Iron Man! How about that?"

"All these people are in danger. You gotta get 'me out of her. You gotta trust me for the five minutes," Tony explained.

"Yeah, I tried that. I got tossed around your house remember?" Rhodey commented, not buying what his friend was saying.

"I think Hammer is working with Vanko," he said, trying to convince his friend for help.

"Vanko's alive?" He inquired.

Tony walked forward, knowing his friend was back on his side, "Was is he?"

"What?" Hammer replied.

"Where's Vanko?" He demanded.

"Who?" Hammer said, playing dumb.

"Tell me," Tony demanded, allowing the excited roar of the crowd to cover their conversation.

Hammer stared at the suit, "what are you doing here, man?"

"Woah woah woah!" Rhodey exclaimed from behind Tony, his suit prepping for an attack.

"That you?" Tony asked.

"No I'm not doing that. That's not me!" Rhodey answered. "I can't move. I'm locked up. I'm locked up! Get out of here! Go! This whole system's been compromised!"

Aria watched from the side as her brother took off into the air as her friend and the Hammer Drones started firing at him. Within seconds Rhodey followed after her brother, as did a handful of the drones. Aria ran backstage, grabbing her phone and quickly calling the police. After her quick call, she ran to the back table where Hammer had his technician set up.

"He's locked us out of the mainframe," she heard the technician say as she approached.

"Who's locked you out of the mainframe?" Pepper demanded, arriving with her assistant just as she did.

"Please, please go away I've got this handled," Hammer informed her.

"Have you now?" Pepper furiously yelled at him.

Aria bent over to look at the computer, trying to see if she was able to give him any assistance.

"Yes I do! In fact, I f your guy hadn't of should up, this wouldn't be happening. So please now, go away!" He fought back, trying to take control of the situation. "Thank you."

Agent Romanoff walked past Pepper and slammed Hammer onto the desk, twisting his arm behind his back and breaking his glasses in the process. Pepper let out a short scream from the unexpected action of her assistant while Aria's head shot up to watch the attack.

"Now you're going to tell me who's behind this?" Natasha asked. "Who's behind this?"

"Ivan, Ivan. Ivan Vanko

"Where is he?" The Shield Agent demanded.

"He's at my facility," Hammer answered.

The agent stalked off, Pepper taking this time to pull her phone out and call the police "I need NYPD please."

"No, no sweetheart, don't call the authorities!" He begged. "Aria, can you do something?"

"Ha, yeah right," Aria sarcastically replied, letting Pepper take control.

"Tell me everything you know," she said to the tech.

Hammer needed up pacing while Aria ran off to locate her stage manager.

"Get every unnecessary personnel out of here," she instructed, clenching her phone I her hand.

"Yes mam," he replied, running off.

Aria peeked out to get a glimpse of the situation at hand. Hammer's drone had started blowing parts of the expo up in an attempt to destroy Iron Man. Screams could be heard through out the park as people were fleeing in terror. Aria could feel her heart clench knowing that her attempt at something great had turned into rubble. She returned back to Pepper, Hammer being dragged away in handcuffs.

"And tell Aria I'll be seeing her soon!" He shouted, before submitting to the police.

"Pepper, I'll take care of my employees. Can you go make sure everyone else is evacuated?" Aria asked

"Be safe," she replied.

Moments later, it was just Aria backstage running about as she came upon a straggler here and there. When she was alone she started her trek to the front of the building. In the distance she heard the sound of an explosion, dodging into a closet for safety.

* * *

Rhodey took off in the suit, finally leaving Pepper and Tony alone on the roof.

"Tony, where's Aria?" Pepper asked calmly, turning to look at him.

"Didn't she get out earlier?" He asked, fear slowly creeping through his body.

"I went out front, she returned to the backstage to make sure the stage crew had all left," she answered.

Tony placed his helmet back on and flew off towards the wreckage of the Stark Expo; towards the remnants of the Mainstage.

"JARVIS, I need you to call Aria and ping her phone," Tony instructed.

* * *

Aria sat curled up on the ground, still in the closet she hid in to protect herself from the wave of explosions. Part of the wall had fallen, a chunk of cement crushing the lower part of her left leg. The sound of drones still exploding were muffled by the dark, enclosed cement.

"This is Aria Stark. Can anyone hear me?" She asked into the headset that she was still wearing.

The only sound the device emitted was static. She slid it off her head and left it at her neck, leaning back against one of the walls closest to her. The small, glass device resting in her right leg lit up, illuminating the enclosed space.

Her thumb grazed the screen, "Hey Tony. How'd it all go?"

"I'm coming to get you. Stay where you are," he instructed, causing Aria to laugh.

"That's a good one. I couldn't move if I wanted to," she replied, wincing in pain. "How come I get injured every time by some enemy of yours at some Stark building? I call bullshit."

"Well you seem to have kept your spirits up about this," Tony joked.

"Give me a heads up next time someone wants to kill you," Aria quipped, hearing the sounds of him landing outside of the room she sought shelter in.

"Marco," he said, opening the door with his face mask up.

"Polo," she replied. "How's my expo looking?"

"Almost non-existent," Tony answered, lifting the chunk of cement off of her and tossing it to the side.

All emotion drained from Aria's face. As Tony lifted her up, she wrapped her arms around his neck, carefully grasping her phone. He carried her over towards a waiting ambulance and placed her on an empty stretcher. The only emotion she showed was due to the pain in her leg; only speaking when asked a question. Tony watched the paramedics strap her to the stretcher and wheeled her into the ambulance. First he heard a siren, the call of a fire truck, before he witnessed a small fleet of them arrive as the ambulance carrying his little sister departed. His face mask slid down into place before he flew off to rejoin Pepper on the roof.

Aria sat in her hospital bed, flipping through the channels on the TV. She was still in her dress, but her shoes were on the ground while a black cast was on her left leg. Her doctor had given her pain killers, making her head feel light. When she finally landed on a show to watch, Pepper quickly walked through the door.

"Oh my god! Are you alright! Tony said you were hurt," Pepper said in one breath.

"A chunk of my expo broke my leg," Aria replied nonchalantly. "All thanks to Tony, all of my planning and hard work and the planning and hard work of countless other has gone to waste."

"He didn't mean to Aria," Pepper told her.

"I need to go on a vacation. Where should I go Pep? Beach or Mountains?" She asked, quickly veering the conversation away from her brother. "I heard Tahiti is a magical place."

"That might be the best for you right now," Pepper agreed, sitting in the chair next to the bed.

"I think I might stay in New York for a while with a friend before I disappear. You and Tony can stay in my penthouse while he builds his tower. I know he's been talking about that for a few months," Aria informed the ginger.

"Just because he wants it doesn't mean he's going to get it," she commented.

"This is Tony. He basically gets what he wants. If he doesn't he throws a tantrum. I also gave him the land as a birthday present," Aria replied, raising her arm and letting it drop a few times.

Pepper watched the young woman, obviously loopy from the pain killers, laughing at her discovery of how her body was reacting to the pain killers.

"I'm resigning from being CEO of Stark Industries," Pepper quietly mentioned, turning her attention to the TV.

"No. Please don't. Your the best for this position. I don't want it. I'm 23, I need to party and live it up before Tony's next enemy kills me or some shit," Aria begged, weakly pawing at her companion. "Tony is Iron Man. He can't run a company anymore. Please Pep! We need you."

Pepper smiled at her, holding in a small laugh, "I'll think about it."

"If Tony tries to come see me tell him to fuck off," she yawned. "I don't want to see him yet."

"I'll do my best, but this is Tony," Pepper acknowledged as the young woman fell asleep.

Tony walked in from the doorway, holding a teddy bear with a red ribbon.

"Did you hear all of that?" Pepper asked, looking up.

"I did," I replied grimly, setting the bear in his sisters arms. "She hates me, doesn't she?"

"She's just upset. You destroyed her expo. Aria needs some normality in her life," Pepper explained.

"Boring. That's boring. She'll find it boring," he quipped. "What's this about you reconsidering CEO?"

"I haven't made up my mind," Pepper informed him.

"Good. I'll take care of the Stark Expo clean up while you think about it," Tony replied.

"Where's your suit?" She asked, curious of its location.

"I parked it out front. It's safe," Tony answered.

He kissed Aria on the forehead and turned to leave.

"Maybe what she needs is family right now. Something stable," Pepper suggested.

Tony continued walking out of the room, pretending he didn't hear what she had said.


	8. Chapter 8

**Thank you everyone who has read this story and for staying with me until the end of the line. Also thank you to everyone who have favorited, followed, and/or reviewed. I really appreciated all of it. I'm sorry for taking so long to update, but life got in the way and writers block didn't help. I wanted to publish this final chapter along with the first chapter of the next story of Aria's life. It's titled Former Allies, and can be found in the Captain America section as well as my profile. I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The windows were closed, curtains blocking any form of light from entering the bedroom. A small lump, buried underneath a pile of blankets, slowly moved their arm towards the phone haphazardly sitting on the corner of the nightstand. With their fingers gripping the slim piece of glass clutched tightly, the arm withdrew back into the warm safety. Fingers sluggishly dragged across the screen. The door to the room opened and suddenly light flooded the room.

"I tried to turn the AC down, but I think there is something wrong. I called to have it looked at. I also brought your Vicodin," Pepper informed her friend. "Come on Aria, I need you to sit up and take it."

Aria didn't budge, staying underneath the covers. Instead the young woman sent another message to her friend.

"You are in pain. Take one, please. If you don't I'll send Tony up here," the woman threatened.

"I don't want to take one because I feel like I'm losing myself. If I don't move I'm not in pain," Aria croaked.

"I'm getting Tony," Pepper announced, turning on her heel and quickly leaving the room.

"No," Aria whined as she became the only occupant of the room.

Succumbing to the defeat against Pepper, Aria struggled to move into a sitting position. The blanket shifted to her lap. By the time Pepper returned Aria had only moved a few inches. Pepper helped her sit up, placing the glass of water and pill on the nightstand first.

"Where's Tony?" Aria questioned, wincing in pain from the movement.

"He's in D.C. with Rhodey. They are being given medals for their valor or something," She explained.

"You lied," Aria murmured, attempting to slide down. "You lied to get me to take drugs."

"Aria. Just take it," Pepper stated, handing her the pill and water. "If Tony was here he'd probably already fixed the AC and it wouldn't feel like winter in here."

Aria grimaced as she swallowed the pill, chasing it with water, "You owe me for lying to me."

"I don't actually, but how about I have Tony pick up pizza on his way home. Will that get me back in your good graces?" Pepper laughed, picking up the empty glass.

"It's a start," Aria yawned.

"We'll have Pizza when you wake up," she replied.

In a minute the young Stark was once again left alone. It had been a week since the destruction of the Stark Expo. Her brief stay in the hospital garnered attention from almost every media outlet. Photographers waited outside the hospital for her to leave and were camped out in front of her building for a glimpse of her or any visitors. After spending the past six years trying hard to avoid the paparazzi, she felt helpless in keeping her private life private. Tony had released a statement in her behalf about her health and the Stark Expo. As the pill Aria just took started to take affect, the pain in her leg began to disparate while her stomach started to churn. Her eyes squeezed shut as she started to breathe slowly and deeply in an attempt to combat the sudden onset of nausea. The sound of rain faded into the silence of her room. It softly fell against her window, easing the creeping anxiety.

Her arm reached out to place her phone back on her nightstand, but stopped once it started to ring. She bright it back and stared at the screen as it read _Unavailable_. Cautiously, her finger swiped across the screen and she brought it up to her ear.

"Hello?" She carefully answered.

"Stark," Fury boomed. "He's active. I need you down here today."

"That's not gonna happen. Tomorrow? Can we do tomorrow afternoon?" Aria slowly breathed, fighting the nausea.

"Fine, but I expect you down here tomorrow," he agreed.

"Where am I going?" Aria questioned. "Or is that confidential?"

"I'll send an escort over at eleven. I need you all here tomorrow," Fury lectured.

"Yes sir," she answered.

The line went dead, signaling Fury had ended the call. Her arm dropped to the bed with her phone in hand. Aria sighed, continuing her breathing exercise until her eyes drooped shut.

* * *

A hand nudged the sleeping woman awake, a plate hovering just over her head.

"I brought pizza," a male voice stated, nudging her again.

"What?" She groaned.

"Aria, come on kiddo," Tony said. "Wake up."

Aria forced her eyes open, blinking repeatedly to adjust to the light.

"I brought pizza. Rhodey and Pepper are downstairs waiting on you. Come on, family dinner time," he quipped.

"Alright. Could you help me?" Aria asked, confusion sprinkled in her tone.

"Only because your family," Tony grinned.

He picked up his younger sister and eased her into her wheelchair, "Hand me my phone?"

"Yeah, here," he said quickly, grabbing the small device from her bedside table and placing it in her hands.

"Thanks," she mumbled.

He pushed her out of the room and towards the stairs. As he approached the top of the stairs he reached down and put the brakes on the wheel chair.

"Ready?" He asked her, picking her up.

"Just don't drop me," Aria answered, wrapping her arms around his neck for support. "If I go down, you're going with me."

"That's the spirit," Tony grinned.

He slowly traversed down the stairs, cautiously feeling out the next descending step. When he reached the bottom he still felt out for any other step. After finding nothing he brought her into the kitchen and placed her on a chair at table.

"Hey Aria!" Rhodey greeted. "Pepperoni right?"

"Yeah," she answered, still a little out of it.

Rhodey placed a plate with a slice of pizza on it in front of her while Pepper joined her at the table.

"How are you feeling?" She inquired, biting into her slice.

"Fuzzy," Aria answered, staring at her pizza as if it were about to do a magic trick.

"And here is your wheelchair," Tony announced, pushing it into the kitchen.

The young brunette's stare hadn't wavered, "Thanks."

"You okay?" Tony asked, visually looking her over.

"Vicodin," Aria informed him, slowly moving her hands towards the food. "Oh I have a Shield thing tomorrow. I need to be downstairs at eleven."

"Why are you involved with Shield? What is this Shield thing?" Pepper interrogated, knowing a little of what Shield has done.

"They just want my help with somethin. Not every Shield person is bad. The last guy I dated was Shield and we were together for almost a year," she answered, taking a bite of her pizza.

"What?" Pepper said in shock. "When were you seeing him?"

"Well, we broke up last week and we were together for almost a year," Aria explained as she continued to eat her pizza.

Tony stopped what he was doing and stared at her, "When were you going to share this?"

"I don't know," she shrugged.

"Did he break up with you?" Tony asked her, joining the three at the table.

"Nah," she yawned.

"Well, what was his name?" Pepper asked.

"Grant Ward. Brown eyes, brown hair, pretty tall, pretty great," Aria rattled off. "And I broke up with him because I didn't see a future with him."

The trio stared at her, soaking in the information. After a moment Rhodey continued eating while the other two continued to stare at her as if she'll continue with more information.

"Could someone get me another slice?" The young woman asked as she finished off the crust.

"I'll get you one," Rhodey replied, taking her plate away.

"You two okay?" Aria asked with an eyebrow raised.

"So Natalie was Shield?" Pepper said, trying to turn the awkward conversation away from Aria.

"The whole time. I'm probably not supposed to tell you guys Shield info, but I feel like you should know a few details. I mean, she worked for you guys," Aria divulged. "Thanks Rhodey."

Aria sat in silence for a few minutes while she starting eating her pizza. Everyone else continued on but threw expecting glances at her to continue with the flow of information.

"So what are the details then?" Tony asked, staring her down. "I already know her name, but what else don't I know?"

"Right, her name is Natasha Romanoff and she is a spy. I think she killed a few guys the other night at Hammer's facility," Aria answered, her mind becoming more clear as her painkillers began to wear off.

"Anything else you'd like to share?" Tony added.

"Nope," she grinned.

* * *

The light fall of rain from the previous night continued on until early the next morning, leaving the roads and sidewalks slick. Aria managed to get herself ready without any help, a personal achievement since the accident. She rolled out to the top of the stairs wearing a baby blue dress, her mother's ring, black flats, and her hair curled.

"Tony! Could you help me?" She called out.

"You're heavy, you know that," he stated as he appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

"Not really," she replied, locking the wheels.

He stomped up the stairs like a scolded little boy, "I'm not always going to do this for you."

"Yes you'd are. This is only a little bit of how you're paying me back for destroying the expo," Aria laughed as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You're lucky you're my sister," Tony commented as he carried her down the stairs.

"I wouldn't say I'm lucky," she mumbled.

"What was that?" He questioned pretending to drop her.

"Tony!" She yelped. "Not cool."

"Maybe I'll make something that'll help with your leg," Tony mused while setting her down on a nearby bench.

"Shouldn't you be worried about the clean up of Stark Expo?" She asked as he returned with her wheelchair.

"Fine, alright. I won't help you then," he sassed. "Have fun at your super secret meeting."

Aria flew out the door of her pent house and into the elevator, anxiously checking the time on her watch. She only had five minutes until she needed to be downstairs, hoping no one else would be getting on. The young woman reached the ground floor in time to see the front of her building cleared of the paparazzi and two agents stand by a black SUV. One of them entered the building and pushed her out of the building, ensuring a quick exit.

Once she and her wheelchair were in the vehicle, it took off. As if the streets were purposefully cleared for them, they arrived quicker than Aria could believe. The stopped at a building with no signage, nothing to make it stand out. She was pushed inside and to the elevator, her two escorts still with her. Aria was brought to the door of a room on the fifth floor, where her two escorts finally left her. Her hand reached out and quickly knocked. When the door opened, Fury appeared behind it.

"Good to see you," he greeted, holding the door open.

"You seem to be more cheerful than usual," Aria laughed while she rolled herself in.

"Aria Stark, this is Steve Rogers. Captain, this is Aria Stark," Fury introduced.


End file.
